European Parliament votes yes to 2030 renewable energy target

14.03.2013

Today the European Parliament called for the "successful" 2020 renewable energy target to be prolonged to 2030.

"The Parliament has once again recognised what a strong renewables industry, driven by ambitious targets, can do for Europe's economy, jobs, energy security and the climate", commented Stephane Bourgeois, Head of Regulatory Affairs at the European Wind Energy Association (EWEA).

"The European Commission must heed the Parliament's support for a target when it publishes its Green Paper on 2030 energy policy in the next few weeks".

The MEPs also condemned the retroactive changes to renewable energy support mechanisms taking place in several EU Member States as detrimental to investor confidence. EWEA has spoken out regularly against such changes, because the resulting political uncertainty needlessly increases the sector's cost of capital.

The MEPs were voting in Plenary on the Tzavela report on the 2050 Energy Roadmap.

EWEA is the voice of the wind industry, actively promoting wind power in Europe and worldwide. It has over 600 members, which are active in over 50 countries, making EWEA the world's largest and most powerful wind energy network.